This invention relates to conveyor apparatus, and more particularly to conveyor apparatus that is adapted for positively controlling the object or objects being conveyed, and for reorienting and/or altering the velocity of those objects during conveyance.
Although those skilled in the art will appreciate that this invention has many other possible applications, the invention will be fully understood from the following explanation of illustrative applications that occur in the making of cigarettes or cigarette-like smoking articles (hereinafter generically called cigarettes).
In a typical cigarette-making machine, the "maker" portion of the machine ejects lengthwise a substantially continuous tobacco-filled paper tube which has been cut transversely at regular intervals to form what will be the smokable portions of the cigarettes. These smokable portions are picked up one after another by the "tipper" portion of the machine which moves them sideways through several further processing steps (e.g., the steps that add a filter to one end of each smokable portion). In going from the maker to the tipper, the longitudinal motion of each smokable portion must be stopped and sideways motion commenced. Typically this is accomplished by a 90.degree. change in the velocity vector of the smokable portion without changing the orientation of the smokable portion. It is difficult to achieve such a radical change in velocity in a reliable manner and without damaging or adversely affecting the smokable portions. For example, it is typical (1) to accelerate each smokable portion as it exits from the maker to create a gap between that smokable portion and the succeeding smokable portion, (2) to rely on inertia to carry the accelerated smokable portion into a groove in the drum which is the first stage of the tipper, (3) to abruptly stop the smokable portion once it is in the groove, and (4) to then cause the drum to rotate slightly to align the next groove for receipt of the next accelerated smokable portion from the maker. The apparatus typically employed for the foregoing does not positively control the smokable portions at all times, and subjects them to rapid acceleration (which is difficult to achieve in the absence of positive control) and rapid deceleration (which can adversely affect the smokable portions, e.g., by causing the tobacco to shift longitudinally relative to the surrounding paper tube).
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide improved conveyor apparatus.
It is a more particular object of this invention to provide conveyor apparatus which positively controls the object being conveyed and which can be used to reorient and/or change the velocity of that object.